Just for giggles....very early chance me

Chance Me / Match Me!
1

<p>Hello, I am a Junior but feel that I received enough basic information to put together a fairly accurate representation of myself. Note that I am still missing a bunch of info (i.e. recommendations, finalized SAT/ACT/SAT II scores, finalized GPA, etc.) But regardless, do you think I have a chance with the info I do give?</p>

<p>Colleges I am looking at:
Dartmouth, Brown, Harvard, UMass Honors College (my safety, of course), Middlebury, Williams, Wesleyan, Colgate</p>

<p>OK, here it goes:</p>

<p>I am a white boy from Massachusetts...immediate negative. My family is very financially secure, and probably won't receive much in the way of financial aid.</p>

<p>Unweighted GPA- 3.92</p>

<p>PSAT (I know it doesn't count) - 211
*eligible for National Merit Scholarship</p>

<p>SAT scores (have only taken once)
Math - 670 (This will most certainly improve when I retake in May)
Critical Reading - 740
Writing - 780
Total - 2190 (I am aiming for a 2200 at the very least)</p>

<p>(ACT and SAT IIs will be taken later)</p>

<p>Academics
-Have made honors/high honors every marking term in high school
-Have received a final grade of at least an A- in every class
-With the exception of English freshman year and electives, all my classes have been Honors classes
-Am taking AP US history this year (is it bad that's it is my only AP so far--my school does not offer them until Junior year)
-Next year I am taking AP BC Calc, AP Spanish, AP lit, and AP bio
- I attend one of the best public high schools in MA, it received the No Child Left Behind-Blue Ribbon (which I guess is a big deal)
- Our school does not rank, but I know I am in the top 10% of about 240 (most likely in the top 5%, but won't know for sure until summer)</p>

<p>Awards
- Shining star award (top 10% of school) - grade 9, 10
- Excellence in Wellness - grade 9
- Above and Beyond in Science - grade 10
(the two above are basically if you excel in those subject areas)
- Member of the National Honor Society and Spanish Honor Society - grade 10, 11</p>

<p>ECs
- Boy Scouts (I am Eagle Scout) - grade 9, 10, 11
- JV tennis - grade 10
- Anime Club - grade 9, 10, 11 (this probably shouldn't be here, I've been to a total of 5 meetings my whole life)
- Volunteer peer tutor for middle school/high school students - grade 11
- New England Mathematics League Members - grade 11
- Medfield High School theater society - grade 9, 10, 11
(I have done stage design, worked the spotlights, and worked as a backstage techy)
- Student Member of Medfield High School Site Council (basically a principal advisory group)
- LifeSmarts Varsity Team member
- Am taking piano lessons (yeah I know, super weak, but w/e) - grade 11
- Senior High Fellowship at my church (basically a youth worship group)</p>

<p>*Note that I plan on continuing all these activities Senior year</p>

<p>Work/intern
- Summer of Grade 10 I worked at a souvenir store across from Fenway Park
- This summer I will be doing an internship at either a law office/business firm (60 hr total)
- I may or may not pursue a part time job senior year</p>

<p>Volunteer/Community Experience
- My eagle project (landscaping for my church) took me about 60 hours to design/execute (in total it took 155 man-hours to complete)
- Through Boy Scouts I have done a good 50 hours of community service (not including eagle project)
- Soup To Go - (cook/bring soup in to homeless in Boston) - 20 hours
- This summer I will be volunteering at my dad's hospital for about 8 hours a week
- Through my church group, I will going on a Youth Mission Trip to Washington</p>

<p>Other possible activities
- Will be running for president of NHS
- Considering participating in my church's bell choir
- May work towards a bronze palm for my Eagle Scout
- May run for Student Council next year
- Applied to Who's Who Registry and may apply to NSHSS
- Recommendations should be good, planning on getting them from my AP US teacher (who is an avid writer) and my math teacher--one may also come from my intern mentor</p>

<p>So, all in all, I realize it is a very unfinished resume, but am I at least on track to be considered at an Ivy league or top tier school?</p>

2

<p>Oh boy, I think you’ll do just fine err “evilspartan”, truthfully you make me want to puke, haha, in a good way, I’m quite jealous of you’re resume. Congrats on the eagle scout, and the national merit and all that other jazz. I’m in the 11% out of 718 at my school, I don’t know if the small size of your class will count against you, I don’t think it should. I made a 195 on my psat and then a 1960 on my SAT and most “good” colleges would accept me, you’re going to have a hard time getting financial aid though, although I’m guessing you probably won’t need it. You’ll get national merit scholarships though from pretty much every college you apply to. I would definetly suggest that you start applying for colleges in the early summer, and merit-based scholarships too, it will make next year so much less stressful knowing where you’ll be going to college early on. I don’t know if I really answered any of your questions but I tried my hardest. Good luck and I’m sure you’ll do fine. And I think it’s smart you’re only taking 4 ap classes next year, I took 6 this year and it almost killed me, I happen to enjoy having a social life and that made it practically impossible. Anyways, good luck once again. Oh, I wouldn’t even bother taking the ACT, it’s pointless, I took it and really didn’t like it. I got a 29 which isn’t amazing but good enough for most colleges. I think you’ll be just fine with the SAT score you have, which frankly you don’t really need to take again. Later. I probably left some stuff out, and half of this probably doesn’t make any sense, but it was just for giggles after all.</p>

3

<p>Thank you very much (btw, I will be ditching evilspartan once I got to college, its just the name I use for everything). I honestly think you may be being a little too generous, however. Until reading your comment, I legit thought my resume was only mediocre. (so the fact that you are jealous of it surprises me). After all, I am not an All-Star athlete or member of a youth symphony orchestra. I just have a sizable list of middle-of-the-road ECs (except Eagle Scout). As for the APs, I honestly thought 4 APs was a ton! Our school is strange in that it is very academic-centered, but most students only take 3-4 APs at the most. I think MHS (the name of my hs) APs are a little bit more difficult than most (not bragging, but it would be impossible to take 6 APs at MHS). Anyways…</p>

<p>I don’t mean to sound pompous, its just that college acceptance is freaking me out (AND I’M ONLY A JUNIOR!!!) I really want to get into top schools (I am a sucker for prestige).</p>

<p>“I made a 195 on my psat and then a 1960 on my SAT and most “good” colleges would accept me”
-Just out of curiosity’s sake, what do you consider the “good” colleges (good colleges are completely subjective)</p>

<p>I guess what I am saying it, I want people to be as honest as possible. If I have no chance at Harvard, say so. If the only college I listed that I can get into is UMass, say so. As long as you’re honest, any feedback is not only welcome but appreciated.</p>

4

<p>I’d say you’re better off than the average Ivy League applicant. Find a nice research position w/ an Ivy League professor (Can you say letter of recommendation?) and you’ll be in the Ivy League before you know it, assuming that you get 720+ on all SAT sections (Reasoning and Subject Test)</p>

5

<p>bump bump bump</p>

6

<p>I need more feedback!!! Please help a nervous junior realize appropriate expectations!</p>

7

<p>you already have a 2190, why not aim a little higher than 2200 (since that’s only 10 points away…) lol.</p>

<p>you are in a very good spot right now for top colleges, good luck.</p>

8

<p>Thank you…</p>

<p>What I meant by aiming for a 2200 was, that was my original goal. I would really like a 2300+, but a mid-2200 would probably be more realistic. I am actually very good in math, I really don’t know what happened on that SAT in math, as it really is my strongest area.</p>

9

<p>Other than the SAT, are there any areas you think I could/should improve in?</p>

10

<p>Here’s the schedule of classes I have taken so far. My high school does not offer APs until Junior year, and even then you can only take a maximum of 2. Therefore my schedule is one of the most rigorous you can take.</p>

<p><em>the grades in parentheses are the two semester grades (some are only a semester long)
*</em>unless marked with an H (honors) or AP, the class is a regular course</p>

<p>Freshman
Wellness (A+/A)
English C1 (A/B+)
Spanish 2 (A/A-)
Geometry H (A/A)
Intro to Web (A)
Biology H (A-/A-)
World History H (A/A)
TV production (A+)</p>

<p>Sophomore
Wellness (A+/A)
World Lit H (A-/A-)
Spanish 3 (A/A)
Algebra 2 H (A-/A)
Physics H (A-/A-)
World History II H (A-/A)
Intro to Business (A)
Printmaking Design (A-)</p>

<p>Junior (these are all semester grades as Junior year isn’t complete yet)
Film Theory (A)
American Lit H (A-)
Spanish 4 (A)
Math Analysis H (pretty much precalc) (A)
Chemistry H (A)
AP US History (A-)
Accounting 1 (A+)</p>

11

<p>Okay, let’s take a breather now. You have great starting SAT Scores and if you increase them to like 2200ish, then you will be in a really good position. The lack of AP’s till senior year is not really your fault, so they adcom won’t put that against you. But, your schedule is pretty much average for an Ivy League person as in all A’s and a couple of A- or B+ or whatever. Your EC’s are a little weak because basically all I am seeing a true committment to is Boy Scouts. And you have no leadership in any of them unless you do that Boy Scout thing.</p>

<p>But, I would stop worrying and trying to “enhance” your application and let the colleges examine you the way that you are. I know that I am not changing myself to get into an Ivy-ish school… and if they reject/waitlist me… then its THEIR loss =)</p>

12

<p>You’re good and off the bat I would say you could get it anywhere with your grades scores and the eagle scout thing.</p>

<p>But on the other hand, you’re really bland. Really just a normal brilliant student. Show your PASSION. And do something really atypical…, you need a hook, not just numbers. You know? Like a project or write your essay on something different like anime. Something has to be unique about you, I know it is there but u have to show the admissions people.</p>

13

<p>Couple of responses</p>

<p>1) I am also very dedicated to Drama. I didn’t really describe it well, but I have participated in 5 shows either back stage or on the spotlight. For tech week I need to stay after school until 9 PM some nights…so pretty much you NEED to show dedication to that. (I will be getting a varsity-like letter in drama later this year)…again, I would need to show this on my application</p>

<p>2) Your right in that, except for Boy Scouts, I don’t really have a passion. That is because I tried to become a well-rounded individual, doing music, boy scouts, drama, sports…but not being overly emotional about any of them (because in doing so I would have to give other stuff up). I thought colleges loved well-roundedness until about 4 months ago, when I heard all about the infamous “hook.” So, basically, it is ****ing me off that I have spent my high school career exposing myself to all sorts of different things instead of focusing on one area to really shine in.</p>

<p>3) As for leadership, I consider my site council leadership in that I help oversee a lot of the “going-ons” in the school. In boy scouts I have also been a assistant patrol leader, patrol leader, assistant senior patrol leader, and will soon be an assistant junior scoutmaster. Also, in theory I will be captain of the LifeSmarts team next year as I will be the only senior left next year. And, as I said, I will be running for president of NHS, but since I’m not that popular, this is definitely not a given.</p>

14

<p>bumpppppppppp</p>

15

<p>bumppppppppppp</p>

16

<p>Come on, a few more insights</p>

<p>I will/have chance(d) back!!!</p>

17

<p>You have relatively weak ECs and none stand out. Dartmouth, Brown, and Harvard are reaches for almost everybody, including you. the others id say you’re probably in.</p>

18

<p>matters what colleges you want to go to
ivy leagues you don’t have enough ap’s and your ec’s are good but overall nothing stands out hard to tell what your true interests are
if you’re talking about only medium selective colleges then you’re fine</p>

19

<p>As for not having enough APs…it really is not my fault. My high school first offers them junior year, and even then you can only take 2 at the very most. Next year I am taking 4, which is a lot for my school.</p>

<p>Regardless, my school cranks out Ivy leaguers by the dozens every year. Ok, bit of an exaggeration, but last year kids were accepted to Harvard, Princeton, Yale, UPenn. This year kids have been accepted to Dartmouth and UPenn.</p>

<p>Obviously I am not these kids, but it does go to show that they got in without taking 14 AP classes.</p>

<p>My school is also one of the best in the state. Therefore, an A- at my high school might be like an A+ somewhere else. Not to brag, but it is the truth.</p>

20

<p>Hey evilspartan92, I am in a similar postion asyou. I admit to being a bit engrossed with Ivy League prestige, but that is not why I want to got to Brown, Harvard, etc. </p>

<p>I am only a sophomore and I am scared out of my mind. I have shown passion in basketball, inventions (from car tech to new eye balls), debate, and will work on strong volunteering this summer (orphanage work and medical attention to less fortunate). My school let me take an AP this year, but I am planning for 6 my senior year; I go to an extremely hard private school, where our regular-level classes= public school AP (I am going to fry myself). </p>

<p>I say that if you show dedication to a quirky thing, like anime or drama, in addition to eagle scout you are in beter shape. I say that you have a decent shot at the Ivies because nobody (unless you’re Bill Gates’s kids LOL) has a solid chance at the Ivies. You are better than most applicants, just a bit short on SATs, dedication, and you will NOT be penalized for your school’s AP system! Good luck!</p>

<p>BTW, can you chance me, my thread is titled, “Do I have a shot…” and “Any Chance at Ivy League”. Thanks!</p>